During the Red Sea International Film Festival (Red Sea IFF) Universal Cinema Film & TV Journal’s Amir Ganjavie was able to interview Cristina Mota, a co-founder of Nitrato Filmes, a Portuguese distributor who began focusing on independent and Latin American cinema.
Amir Ganjavie, UniversalCinema Magazine (UM): Can you start by briefly discussing your role in the company?
Cristina Mota (CM): I manage the acquisitions of films, and then distribute them in my own country. I also negotiate with the Portuguese exhibitors for distribution and acquisition. We typically acquire completed films, but we understand the importance of acquiring in an early stage in a competitive market.
(UM): And are you still mostly focusing on South American titles?
(CM): We started mainly with Portuguese language titles, as we were very focused on Brazil. But then we expanded our focus to other regions, and now we intend to have a more diverse catalog.
(UM): Do you also screen or distribute Portuguese films or only international films?
(CM): Yes. For example, we released three or four Portuguese films per year.
(UM): And how many movies do you usually distribute each year?
(CM): This particular year was huge because we distributed almost 20 films.
(UM): And all of them are feature films, documentaries, a combination?
(CM): Both. For example, Four Daughters which screened at Red Sea IFF, we are going to release at the beginning of next year, it’s a kind of documentary feature film, but mostly we do feature films.
(UM): But no short films?
(CM): No. We’ve had one or two, but it’s a difficult plant to distribute commercially.
(UM): Do you have a definition for a good movie? A type of movie you have to have with your company?
(CM): That’s the $1 million question. I think a good movie is one we want to watch until the end, to know what is going to happen next. But it’s a difficult definition. It must be a narrative or a story that stays with us long after seeing the film. We seek captivating and original stories with high artistic expression, such as Skolimowski’s “EO.”
(UM): And how do you usually acquire the films? Do the filmmakers send you the films, or is it through going to the festivals that you become familiar with new films?
(CM): It’s mainly through the film festivals for the markets. The main film festivals we usually attend in Europe, are Berlin, Cannes, and Venice. And our acquisitions are through the international sales agents.
(UM): So, you don’t gather international rights, you get rights, mostly for Portuguese?
(CM): Yes. Only for our territory, or Portuguese language territories. Mainly for TV rights for Angola, Mozambique, etc. Except Brazil, because it’s another territory.
(UM): How is the situation right now for theatrical screenings in Portugal? Has it been changed because of the COVID? Is it returning to normal pre-Covid times?
(CM): I think it’s becoming normal again. I think things are almost equal to before pre-COVID. I think we are going to end this year with the same numbers as the 2019s. Besides the distribution company, we also have an exhibition. We own our own cinema because we felt the difficulties at the beginning of getting an arthouse cinema to screen our titles.
(UM): In general, what kind of movies are more successful in Portugal?
(CM): The Thriller is popular, but we are not focused on that. Arthouse movies are the most challenging to make work because it’s very difficult to make things happen with unknown directors or unknown cast. That’s a big challenge. It’s important to have film festivals to give voice to these unknown filmmakers. It’s important to have this balance. We don’t work with big studios or blockbusters. We are focused on independent and arthouse films. But I think there is a young audience eager to understand and to know stories from all over the world, different from the mainstream ones.
(UM): And what’s your relationship with the streamers? Did they change the game in significant ways?
(CM): I believe so. But Portugal is a really small territory. I think we have a good relationship with streamers, but we still focus on a classical theatrical release. Sometimes, we do digital releases, but we still prioritize theatrical and the classic way of watching movies, and then we go to the streamers. But, of course, it’s changing everything. But in my experience, we can still focus on classical and theatrical releases.
(UM): And you’re at Red Sea IFF, how important is a festival like it while you are here?
(CM): Red Sea IFF I think is beginning to be an important player in the world. This is a new discovery that we hope will be significant in uncovering new talents and expanding our network, but we believe this festival will increasingly become more important on the global stage. For me, it’s my first time attending, but this looks like a well-established Festival, almost. Keeping in mind that a few years ago there was nothing about cinema here, they are moving very fast. I think it’s important to give a voice to this region. And if producers with the knowledge come here, I think this will be a good marriage, and it will be very important for the world of distribution and cinema. I think it’s going to be very important, this festival.
(UM): And in terms of the marketing tools, what kind of marketing tools do you usually use in Portugal? Is it social media? Is it newspapers?
(CM): The usual ones for cinema. We do press screenings and try to have journalists write about the films. Then, about the marketing, we use mainly social media and some advertising and TV, radio, and through some key leaders (Portuguese) speaking about the films. I think it’s the most important approach because if someone you follow on certain matters speaks about your film, that helps best.
(UM): You mentioned that you opened your own theater. How is it? Is it easy to find an arthouse theater in Portugal or challenging?
(CM): It’s not easy and that’s the challenge because we cannot compare with France and its history of arthouse cinemas. It was difficult for us at the beginning when we created the distribution company. We felt that we needed to have a space to show our movies because there were no arthouse cinemas, only multiplexes used to playing blockbusters. So, we opened this theater. But in Portugal, there are only a few examples like this. We should have more.
(UM): You mentioned comparing Portugal to France, how many tickets are usually being sold for a good arthouse movie in Portugal? I want to compare it with France.
(CM): Oh, it’s a very difficult question, and we have to see each case in particular but numbers are decreasing, it’s a fact. For a very good movie, I could say that distributors in Portugal would be happy with an average number of 5000 tickets. So, even without having the numbers from France I think it’s not comparable.
(UM): And the main cities in Portugal are Lisbon, Porto, and –
(CM): Lisbon, Puerto only. I think the other cities are really small. Our county’s only 10 million.
(UM): And in terms of promotion of the movies, films like Barbie that try to create “events” are becoming more successful. I’m curious if you are trying to use these strategies.
(CM): Yeah. We have already the strategy that the solution is almost becoming similar to a film festival because events is a reality right now. We also feel we need to have a different kind of approach for each release, for example, with special screenings, screen days, directors, presence, introductions, and inviting speaking leaders to talk about the film before or after the screening. That is very common nowadays. And that it’s a really important approach to each release.
(UM): And how important are festival laurels for the general public? For example, if a movie gets into the Cannes, does the general public care about it?
(CM): Yes. That is very important. That’s why I say that we have to balance. In Portugal, a film that has the laurels of Cannes, for example, I think is still important.
(UM): Is there anything else you’d like to add?
(CM): Our main challenge is altering the paradigm that only older audiences go to cinemas for certain films while younger audiences stick to blockbusters. We aim to attract a younger audience to cinemas for films with different languages and from diverse regions. Finding the right balance between traditional and digital releases and adapting marketing strategies for various audiences is crucial.
We are a really small company and in a small territory, but it is important because we give voice to these filmmakers. And if each region has a distribution company like Nitrato Filmes, it would be great for these young filmmakers, especially women filmmakers from the region, to have the chance to have their work seen in every single part of the globe.
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